Ask Lafeber

Budgie eggs

My budgie laid its eggs for the first time..Will all eggs become unfertile as it is for the first time?

Hello,

If you also have a male, and the birds have mated, then the eggs can be fertile whether this is the first clutch or not. However, first clutches typically fail because of poor incubation, or the parents don’t figure out how to feed the chicks. One parent must sit on the eggs at all times – day and night. They have to figure out how to keep them all warm, and they have to turn the eggs. Then if the eggs do hatch, they have to feed the chicks. The best thing to do is give the pair privacy and see if they figure things out. If your birds are too young to breed, then they probably will make mistakes. Your female should be at least 18 months to 2 years old and the male needs to be at least a year old. Younger birds can breed, but they are not ready for all of the responsibility and they tend to make mistakes or develop bad breeding habits. You also need to be feeding the parents a nutritionally balanced diet like pellets or our foraging diets – Avi-Cakes, Nutri-Berries or Pellet-Berries. A seed mix will not provide the nutrition they need. If their nutrition is poor, the chicks may not survive. In addition you can offer dark leafy greens, chopped veggies, multi grain bread, and cooked eggs with the shell washed, crushed and cooked with them. If this clutch is not good, or if they raise chicks, you need to remove the nest box and rest the pair for a few months. You should not let them have more that 2 clutches per year.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda